Katy Perry - Firework - Chord

Key Db major – Bb minor Chords Ab, Fm, Db, Bbm, Eb Easy key C (capo 1)

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Capo 0

Ab  Bbm  Fm  Db

Ab               Bbm
Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Fm
drifting through the wind
Db                   
wanting to start again
Ab               Bbm
Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Fm
like a house of cards
Db
one blow from caving in
Ab               Bbm
Do you ever feel already buried deep
Fm                        Db
6 feet under screams but no one seems to hear a thing
Ab                       Bbm
Do you know that there's still a chance for you
Fm
'Cause there's a spark in you
Db
You just gotta

  Ab         Bbm        Fm     Db
Ignite, the light, and let it shine
     Ab      Bbm            Fm        Db
Just own the night like the 4th of July

                     Ab    Bbm
'Cause baby you're a firework
                   Fm           Db
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
             Ab        Bbm
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh" 
                        Fm    Db
As you shoot across the skyyyyy
               Ab   Bbm
Baby, you're a firework 
                   Fm     Db
Come on, let your colors burst
             Ab        Bbm
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh" 
                        Fm              Db
You're gonna leave 'em all in awe, awe, awe

Ab                    Bbm
You don't have to feel like a waste of space
Fm             Db
You're original, cannot be replaced
Ab              Bbm
If you only knew what the future holds
Fm                      Db
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Ab                    Bbm
Maybe your reason why all the doors are closed
Fm                       Db
So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road
Ab                    Bbm
Like a lightning bolt, your heart will blow
Fm                       
And when it's time, you'll know 
Db
You just gotta

Ab         Bbm         Fm     Db
Ignite, the light, and let it shine
     Ab      Bbm            Fm        Db
Just own the night like the 4th of July

                     Ab    Bbm
'Cause baby you're a firework
                   Fm           Db
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
             Ab        Bbm
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh" 
                        Fm    Db
As you shoot across the skyyyyy
               Ab   Bbm
Baby, you're a firework
                   Fm     Db
Come on, let your colors burst
             Ab        Bbm
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh" 
                        Fm              Db
You're gonna leave 'em all in awe, awe, awe

Fm
Boom, boom, boom
                       Db
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
                           Ab
It's always been inside of you, you, you
                            Eb
And now it's time to let it through...

                     Ab    Bbm
'Cause baby you're a firework
                   Fm           Db
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
             Ab        Bbm
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh" 
                        Fm    Db
As you shoot across the skyyyyy
               Ab   Bbm
Baby, you're a firework
                   Fm     Db
Come on, let your colors burst
             Ab        Bbm
Make 'em go "Oh, oh, oh" 
                        Fm              Db
You're gonna leave 'em all in awe, awe, awe

Ab             Bbm
Boom, boom, boom 
                       Fm             Db
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon 
Ab             Bbm
Boom, boom, boom 
                       Fm             Db
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon

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Katy Perry - Firework Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Katy Perry – Firework : key and chord analysis

The song opens on Ab and ends on Db. Its chords belong to both Db major and Bbm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

Db major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = C (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = Gb (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

Bb minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Gb (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = Ab (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the Db major side because it comes to rest on Db and Db is heard 28 times against 27 for Bbm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from Bb minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to Db or to Bbm; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.

Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.

Seen from Db major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Db	Tonic — home	Db · F · Ab	28×
ii	Ebm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Eb · Gb · Bb	—
V/V	Eb	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Absecondary dominant	Eb · G · Bb	1×
iii	Fm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	F · Ab · C	28×
V/vi	F	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bbmsecondary dominant	F · A · C	—
IV	Gb	Subdominant — moves away from home	Gb · Bb · Db	—
V	Ab	Dominant — strongest pull home	Ab · C · Eb	28×
vi	Bbm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	Bb · Db · F	27×
vii°	Cdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C · Eb · Gb	—

Seen from Bb minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Bbm	Tonic — home	Bb · Db · F	27×
ii°	Cdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C · Eb · Gb	—
III	Db	Relative major — the bright side	Db · F · Ab	28×
iv	Ebm	Subdominant — moves away from home	Eb · Gb · Bb	—
IV	Eb	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	Eb · G · Bb	1×
v	Fm	Minor dominant — soft pull	F · Ab · C	28×
V	F	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F · A · C	—
VI	Gb	Submediant — warm colour	Gb · Bb · Db	—
VII	Ab	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Ab · C · Eb	28×

Analysis

The key pair is Db major and its relative Bb minor (5 flats). 5 different chords appear 112 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Eb acts as a secondary dominant, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.

Chord movement

Ab Bbm DbV → videceptive cadence BbmVII → iAeolian arrival ×27

The move to watch is Ab → Bbm, heard 27 times. From the Db side it reads V → vi (deceptive cadence: expected Db, lands on Bbm); from the Bbm side it is VII → i (Aeolian arrival: rises a whole tone into home). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

Db major pentatonic and Bb minor pentatonic are the same five notes (Db – Eb – F – Ab – Bb): start from Db for a brighter phrase, from Bb for a bluesier one.
Over Ab, land on Ab, C, Eb — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Fm, land on F, Ab, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Db, land on Db, F, Ab — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.

The song on the circle of fifths

Played in the song — chord of the key
Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
Played — borrowed or outside chord
Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii

Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.

Capo and easier keys

With Db major shapes

Capo 1 + C shapes
Capo 4 + A shapes
Capo 6 + G shapes

With Bb minor shapes

Capo 1 + Am shapes
Capo 6 + Em shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

1 semitone down · capo 1 keeps the original pitch
4 semitones up

The song's harmonic story

The opening Ab lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The backbone is Ab, Fm, Db, Bbm — V–iii–I–vi from the Db side, VII–v–III–i from the Bbm side. Eb adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/V — leads to Ab. Keep an ear on Ab → Bbm (V → vi in Db, VII → i in Bbm): deceptive cadence — expected Db, lands on Bbm. The final chord is Db; the ear comes to rest in Db.

This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.